Polk County Arts

October, 2017

Just in time for your Halloween celebrations, Ouachita Little Theatre selected the comedy/horror classic film by Mel Brooks, Young Frankenstein, to be the October feature at Wednesday Night at the Lyric. This film made in 1974 is a parody of the classic horror film genre, mainly adapted from Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. Her novel was made into a series of ...

BY BARBARA LEWIS – Each year in October, SouthWest Artists, Inc., and the Mena Art Gallery bring what is becoming one of the nation’s finest painting competitions to Mena. Called the Art of the Heartland National Exhibition, it is composed of paintings by some of the top artists on this continent. Some of the masters of art history began with ...

September, 2017

Saturday, Sept. 30 at 7:30 is the Hope and Inspiration Concert to benefit Hurricane relief efforts. This live performance is an OLT “Bonus Event” and will donate all proceeds to the charity chosen by the audience. Join us, have fun, and be inspired while helping those in need! The next Junior Ouachita Little Theatre (JOLT) play will be the holiday ...

Rehearsals at Ouachita Little Theatre are well underway for one of the best-known Shakespearian tragedies of all time, “Hamlet”. OLT often makes us laugh or sing familiar songs for many productions on its stage, but any credible theatre is obliged to offer the classics. These productions, such as Hamlet, include those that inspire, instruct, and maybe even frighten. Director Brad ...

BY JULIE VANDE ZANDE – We are fortunate in Mena to have several artists who not only produce beautiful artwork but teach others as well. Niki Dempsey is a successful artist in many fields; she has worked as a professional artist, is a trained florist, a talented writer, and is currently teaching a series of teen classes for the gallery. ...

Ouachita Little Theatre is always looking for new ways to enhance the entertainment and leisure past-time activities of the local community. The newest venture is taking form as the “Memories Saver Service.” The Memories Saver Service gives patrons the opportunity to convert their personal VHS tapes, old home movies, audio cassettes and more, to a new DVD format. There will ...

The next Junior Ouachita Little Theatre (JOLT) play will be the holiday musical “Elf.” Performances are December 8-10 and December 15-17. Auditions will be held October 6 from 4-6 PM and October 7 from 9-11 AM at the OLT. This cast requires 2nd and 3rd graders to play elves and teens to perform the majority of the parts. There are ...

BY BARBARA M. TOBIAS – Missy Williams loves to knit and loves to help others find as much joy in “tangling up yarn” as she does. She volunteers at Mena Art Gallery each Saturday afternoon to lead the Fiber Arts group: several people who are enthusiastic about the various kinds of art that can be made from fiber. There are ...

By Barbara Lewis Today’s trend in art, with artists, collectors as well as interior designers, has moved toward smaller sizes. As these are less expensive, most anyone can afford to own original paintings by up and coming or even well established artists. Even in the smallest homes, one can have a nice collection grouped in a small space. “SMALL WORKS” ...